MUHAMMAD FARRUKH IRFAN KHAN, J.---Through the instant petition under Article 199 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, the petitioners, who are work charge/dai ly wages employees of Tehsil Municipal Administrations, Muridkey , seek regularization of their services.
2. Brief facts of the case are that the petitioners are employees of the respondents-TMA. They were appointed as "Khakroob" in the year 2007 on Work Charge/Daily Wages basis and since then they are continuously in service.
Their appointments are renewed from time to time but not regularized despite the fact that they are performing their duties against such posts which are permanent in nature. It is asserted that certain similarly placed employees of the respondents approached this Court by filing W.P.No,2987/201 1, which was allowed and consequently those employees have been regularized in service but the same benefit is not being extended to the petitioners. Hence, the instant writ petition.
3. Learned counsel contends that the petitioners are serving against their post for a continuous period spreading over long 11 years, which fact is sufficient to hold that the said posts are permanent in nature; that since the petitioners have served against the said posts more than 90 days, therefore, they have attained the status of regular employees by operation of law; that petitioners have been treated discriminately by the respondents and they have been deprived of their legal right of regularization without any lawful justification or reason; that the petitioners cannot be held disentitled for regularization on the ground that they were appointed on work charge basis for a specific period of 89 days and their period of appointments was extended time and again with one day's break; that the petitioners are entitled to the same relief which has been granted to other similarly placed employees of the department. Learned counsel has relied upon the cases of Province of Punjab through Secretary Communication and Works Department and others v. Ahmad Hussain (2013 SCMR 1547 ) and Pir Imran Sajid and others v. Managing Director/General Manager (Manager Finance) Telephone Industries of Pakistan and others (2015 SCMR 1257 ).
4. Learned Law Officer has opposed the instant petition by arguing that employment of the petitioners was purely on work charge or daily wages basis; that no right of regularization is accrued due to the length of service; that the petitioners were recruited for a specific period of 89 days; and that employment of the petitioners was purely on temporary basis as such they cannot be regularized.
5. Arguments heard. Record perused.
6. This Court earlier in so many writ petitions has dealt with and decided the issue being raised in the instant writ petition. In Writ Petition No,29287/201 1 this Court has referred Writ Petition No,826 /2011 titled "Ahmed Hasan and others v. Government of the Punjab ", which was filed by some similarly placed employees. The same was allowed by this Court, vide order dated 6.12.2012. The respondents-department filed I.C.A. No,11 of 2011, which was also dismissed by a learned Division Bench of this Court, vide order dated 14.3.2013, upholding the order of the Single Bench of this Court. Feeling aggrieved the respondent-Department filed Civil Petition No,708 of 2013 before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan, which was also dismissed with cost of Rs,50,000/-. The judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan is reported as Province of Punjab through Secretary Communication and Works Department and others v. Ahmad Hussain (2013 SCMR 1547 ). In this view of the matter , I am of the firm view that case of the present petitioners being at par with the petitioners of the cited case, they are also entitled to the same relief. At this stage, this Court would like to observe that despite resolvi ng the issue of regularization of one set of the employees of the same department the same relief is not being extended to the similarly placed employees without there being any judicial order of this Court. Such a tendency shown by the public functionaries of different departments is not only against the dictum laid down by the Apex Court in the case of Government of Punjab v. Sameena Parveen and others (2009 SCMR 1) but it also results in increasing the rate of litigation in the Superior Courts of this Country . For future guidance the observations of the Apex Court made in the cited case are reproduced below: "that if a Tribunal or the Supreme Court decides a point of law relating to the terms and conditions of a civil servant who litigated, and there were other civil servants, who may not have taken any legal proceedings, in such a case, the dictates of justice and rule of good governance demand that the benefit of the said decision be extended to other civil servants also, who may not be parties to that litigation, instead of compelling them to approach the Tribunal or any other legal forum---All citizens are equal before law and entitled to equal protection of law as per Art. 25 of the Constitution."
In the above circumstances, the Chief Secretary , Government of the Punjab is directed to convey to all Heads of Government Departments to decide the matters of regularization of their emplo yees, if any, in the light of the decision rendered by the Apex Court in the case of Province of Punjab through Secretary Communication and.
Works Department and others v. Ahmad Hussain (supra) of their own rather to compel their poor employees to have recourse to the courts for vindication of their right. Needless to mention here that the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan in the case of Secretary (Schools), Government of Punjab, Education Department and others v.
Yasmin Bano (2010 SCMR 739) Government of the Punjab has already issued directions for regularization of all the contract/daily wages/work charge employees but these directions are not being adhered to in letter and spirit. In future, if any inaction on the part of Government functionary in this respect comes to the notice of this Court, it may entail imposition of heavy fine on the defaulting Authority/Department. A copy of this judgment shall be sent to the Chief Secretary , Government of the Punjab for ensuring compliance.
7. In the light of above, the instant writ petition is allowed and the responden ts are directed to proceed for regularization of services of the petitioners immediately . revisions by the competent authorities. Therefore, it is advisable to consult the official sources or legal professionals for the most up-to-date and accurate information.